The industrialists and financers, who were to be questioned by Enforcement Directorate in the Yes Bank probe, sought an escape route in the wake of Coronavirus outbreak. A few days ago, ED called many debtors of Yes Bank to probe the financial irregularities in the company and inquire any possible cases of favor by bank management.
The investigation agency already discovered quid pro quo case in the loan to Wadhawan family led DHFL group. But other companies and their management is yet to be investigated. Media baron Subhash Chandra of the Zee Group, Sameer Gehlaut of Indiabulls Group, Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal, Dheeraj and Kapil Wadhawan of DHFL group and Peter Kerkar of Cox and Kings were summoned by the agency by the agency for investigation.
However, majority of these industrialists including Subhash Chandra have skipped the ED probe, and cited the outbreak of Covid-19 as the reason behind skipping the investigation.
Among those who skipped the investigation by ED includes Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan, Naresh Goyal, Sameer Gehlaut, and Subhash Chandra. 19 companies of Chandra led Essel Group has a total loan of Rs 8,415 crore from Yes Bank. Gehlaut has told the investigation agency that he is in London and given the outbreak of the Virus, he could travel to India to join the probe in such public health emergency situation.
It is obvious that majority of these industrialists and financers are seeking an escape route, using the outbreak of the virus as an opportunity. So far, India has tackled the Coronavirus situation very well and given the fact that ED is premiere investigation agency, they must be using all precautions to prevent any hazard from Coronavirus, either to themselves or those who they investigate.
Not only industrialists, criminals and convicts have got a golden opportunity in the form of Coronavirus to free themselves from jails and slow down the investigation.
Previously it was reported that in Punjab, the Jails department is mulling the release of 3,000 drug peddlers and 2,800 petty criminals. The object is to prevent the overcrowding of prisons and containing the Coronavirus outbreak as cramped up spaces in jails can become the breeding grounds of the novel virus. The outbreak has thus come as an unexpected relief for the petty criminals.
The situation in the United States is no different. The Los Angles County Sheriff’s Department is reportedly releasing jail inmates and cutting down on the number of people booked into custody as it doesn’t want to risk those already in custody.
Rebellions and rioting has become the norm in such prisons over Coronavirus-related restrictions imposed by jail authorities. Taking advantage of this situation, hundreds of prisoners have escaped from jails.
A more serious situation has developed in Iranian jails. The country has been hit severely by the COVID-19 outbreak. At the time of writing this story, 17361 people had already tested positive for Coronavirus and 1,135 had perished to it.
According to a recorded message British-Iranian political prisoner Anoosheh Ashoori, lodged in an Iranian jail over spying charges, there is complete chaos in the jail he is imprisoned in because of the Wuhan virus outbreak. Iran is releasing prisoners with jail terms upto 5 years and also older inmates with longer jail terms.
Like the criminals in other countries, those in India are also seeking escape route through Coronavirus. Kapil Wadhwan is facing charges of cheating and corruption. Kapil Wadhwan led DHFL has been involved in siphoning off 2,200 crore rupees from PF fund investment of UP power sector employees. Now after the Yes Bank case came out in the open, it was revealed that Yes Bank invested 3,700 crore in the short-term debentures of DHFL for a kickback of 600 crore rupees loan to a firm owned by daughter of Rana Kapoor. People like Wadhwan must be behind the bars but they are roaming free, thanks to Coronavirus.